"Few stretches
of canal conjure up such romantic allusions to a bygone age as the
Caldon, twisting through the precincts of Johnson Brothers' Pottery at
Eastwood.

The scene has changed
little with the passage of time and would be familiar to past
generations of potters. The huge works lines both sides of the canal
and is full of fascination, not least because this is one of few
businesses using inland waterways for commercial haulage.

In the 1960's Johnson
Brothers, part of Wedgwood's Earthenware Division, acquired the former
premises of British Aluminium on the banks of the Caldon at Milton,
and converted them for use as a packing house. Soon afterwards its
management took the unusual decision to experiment with waterborne
transport, commissioning three specially designed narrow boats — the
Milton Princess, Milton Maid and Milton Queen. Each is
sixty feet long, seven feet wide and can carry up to twenty tons,
three times more than a lorry trailer, with greatly reduced building
and operating costs.

The experiment was a
huge success; transporting ware by water reduced costs by 50%, and
diminished the number of breakages. The four mile trip took about one
hour. In May 1986, the Milton site was closed, though the boats may
still be seen delivering wares along the short stretch of canal to the
Eagle Pottery at Ivy House."